Cigarette lighter



R. O. OBRIEN CIGARETTE LIGHTER July 8, 1969 Filed May 10, 1967 INVENTOR RAYMOND O'BRIEN ATITORNEVY Y 3,454,742 CIGARETTE LIGHTER Raymond 0. OBrien, J. Chaplin, Howard Blvd., Mount Arlington, NJ. 07856 Filed May 10, 1967, Ser. No. 637,437 Int. Cl. F23q 7/00 US. Cl. 219-262 3 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE This invention is concerned with providing an improved automobile dashboard cigarette lighter which can be energized and deenergized by Simple movement of a chimney element of said lighter, in which the cigarette to be lighted is placed, back and forth using a mere fingertip touch, and without necessitating the removal of said lighter from said dashboard.

This invention relates to a motor vehicle cigarette lighter. More particularly this invention relates to a new and improved automobile dashboard cigarette lighter which can be plugged into any existing vehicular lighter socket.

It is indeed well known that the conventional popout automobile cigarette lighter, hereinafter referred to as lighter, an accessory in the vast majority of cars and trucks today is an extremely hazardous device to use when the vehicle is in motion. Of necessity, either the driver removes his eyes from the road in order to light his cigarette or he waves the red-hot element around in his face until he finds the cigarette in his mouth. Often times the driver is burned by the element. It can be seen that this conventional lighter is and can be a major cause of trafiic accidents. Considerable thought has been given by various people to the problem of improving the automobile dashboard cigarette lighter.

The use of more or less vertical chimneys has been tried in which the cigarette is lighted; however, these have had disadvantages in that either the circuit to the ligher has been completed at all times (i.e. hot) or that some sort of pumping action has been necessary to simulate pufling.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an improved lighter that can be safely operated while the motor vehicle is in motion without the necessity of the driver taking his eyes off the road.

It is another important object to provide an improved lighter that can be very simply actuated to provide heat for the cigarette without the necessity of pulling action.

It is still a further important object to provide a lighter whose heating element will remain dormant until actuated for'its intended use.

These and other objects will flow from and become apparent from the structures and combination of parts hereinafter more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the lighter, constructed according to the teaching of the invention, inserted into an auto lighter dashwell;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the improved lighter, constructed according to one embodiment of the invention and shows the lighter both in the actuated and dormant positions, with rear portion cut-away, as shown by crosshatching.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 taken along lines 33, and also shows a cut-away portion as denoted by cross-hatching.

Referring now to the figures of the drawing the lighter comprises a chimney element 10 piovtally engaged with a dashboard plug-in element 16, whose forward portion 24 is shaped substantially to conform, to conventional united States Patent O ce 3,454,742 Patented July 8, 1969 lighter socket S (phantom lines) present in most conventional motor vehicle dashboards.

For purposes of illustration, FIG. 1 depicts an automobile dashboard D (shown by phantom lines) with the entire device as it would appear, when inserted into a lighter socket (not shown) on said dashboard, with a cigarette (also shown by phnatom lines) resting therein.

The rear portion 26 of plug-in element 16 extends parallel to and is displaced downwardly from forward portion 24, ending in a curved portion 28, so curved to allow free movement of chimney element 10 around pin 22 so that said element 10 is pivotally engageable with said element 16. The hot lead 18 extends rearwardly from hot center contact 32 through portion 24 to contact 12. Another contact, also 12, extends from resistance heating coil 14. A ground wide 20 extends forward from pin 22 through portion 24, being looped outside of said element 16 for part of the way, so as to ground at the inside rim of the dash socket S (as shown by phantom lines). The relaxed position for ground 20 is shown by dotted lines. When the chimney element 10 is normally tilted forward as denoted by phantom lines in FIG. 2, i.e. toward the dashboard D, the contacts 12 are open (as shown by dotted lines in FIG. 2) and the heating coil 14 is dormant or cold. When the driver wishes to light a cigarette, it is dropped vertically into chimney element 10; and the latter is then tilted back with a light finger touch closing the contacts 12. The cigarette is lighted automatically by the resistance heating coil 14 without the necessity of pufling. Holes 30 in said element 10 provide draft to aid in such lighting. Tracing the electrical circuit, we follow it from hot center contact 32 on power source 34 through hot lead 18 to make (and break) contact at contacts 12, to coil 14, thence down to pin 22, from pin 22 to ground wire 20 sprung under pin 22 and grounded at the inside rim of the dash socket S. It is to be noted that the ground wire 20 is tempered and also serves to (a) hold the plug-in element 16 in the dash socket S and (b) to hold pin 22 under tension so it is held firmly in place. While said elements 10 and 16 may be any suitable size easily accommodated in conventional automobiles, or other vehicles, they are preferably about /2. to inch in diameter and about 2 inches long, respectively. While pin 22 pivotally engages said elements 10 and 16 so that the chimney element 10 is easily pushed forward or back, it is to be understood that the fit is snug enough so as to prevent jarring back and forth by bumpy roads or up (or down) grades, yet it is easily moved by the fingers Without distracting the drivers attention whenever he wants to open or close contacts 12 by moving chimney element 10.

The many advantages of the invention described above are readily seen. For example, the chimney is large enough so that it can be seen and operated by peripheral vision by a touch of the finger tips without distracting the drivers attention from the road. Another advantage is that in the event of an emergency calling for immediate action by the driver, he is not called upon to drive the vehicle with a hot lighter element in his hand. A still further advantage is that in the event of an emergency stop, the rapid deceleration of the motor vehicle will tend to throw the chimney element forward to the otf position, de-energizing the circuit.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. A motor vehicle cigarette lighter comprising a chimney element and a plug-in element, said plug-in element having a forward portion shaped substantially to conform to a motor vehicle cigarette lighter socket, heating means located within said chimney means for lighting the tip of a cigarette resting on said heat means, first contact means and second contact means electrically connected to said heating means, said second contact means being mounted within said plug-in element and engageable with electrical supply contact means of said cigarette lighter socket, third contact means electrically connected to said first contact means, said chimney element, said heating means and said first contact means being movable relative to said plug-in element and said third contact means between a first position wherein said first contact means is disengaged from said third contact means and said heating means is thereby de-energized and a second position wherein said first contact means is engaged with said third con tact means and said heating means is thereby energized, wherein said chimney element is pivotally connected to said plug-in element and said chimney element is pivotally movable relative to said plug-in element from a first position wherein said heating means is de-energized to a second position wherein said chimney element is more remote from sad lighter socket and said heating means is energized.

2. A lighter according to claim 1, wherein said chimney element is provided with ventilating means to facilitate vertical air flow through said chimney element, thereby facilitating ignition of said cigarette tip.

3. A lighter according to claim 2, wherein said ventilating means comprises an array of perforations in Said chimney element in the vicinity of said heating means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS VOLODYMYR Y. MAYEWSKY, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

